Chapter 31

Lin Miao truly lost the eight rounds without any suspense. She was already used to losing. After all, in this game, she had never won. Her goal every time was just to hold on a little longer, to not lose too quickly.
Then, the two of them leaned against each other and chatted. As they talked, Yu Jingxuan noticed that Lin Miao had stopped talking. He turned his head and saw that she had already fallen asleep.
After all, she had played badminton during the day and taken the dog for a walk at night. It was no surprise she was tired.
She was wearing the pajamas she had worn when she stayed here before, and everything felt just like it used to be. But in reality, tomorrow morning, she would have to leave again.
Yu Jingxuan carefully took away the paper and pen they had used to draw the tic-tac-toe game and covered her with a blanket.
Lin Miao didn’t wake up. She had turned her head to sleep on the white pillow with delicate patterns, sleeping very soundly.
Tomorrow morning, she would go home, and it might be a long time before they saw each other again.
Yu Jingxuan sighed and prepared to take the dog out so that Lin Miao could sleep peacefully.
Da Huang was a bit reluctant, lying on the bed and not moving.
Lin Miao woke up early the next day. She opened the door and found that her brother was already up.
Since it was still early, they could still go out and walk Da Huang, Fei Fei, and Jia Jia.
Of course, Lin Miao remembered that the teacher said they needed to gather at 9 o'clock. She had a good habit and always arrived twenty minutes early for gatherings.
So, after having breakfast with the adults, Lin Miao went upstairs, grabbed her schoolbag, said goodbye to everyone, and was sent back to the hotel by Mother Yu and Yu Jingxuan.
In the car, Lin Miao kept talking. “Brother, I’ll come to visit you when I have time. You need to study hard, okay?”
Yu Jingxuan, on the other hand, didn’t say much.
The distance wasn’t far. When Lin Miao got out of the car, she immediately ran toward Teacher Feng because they were already gathering!
Yu Jingxuan watched her run over from the car, and once again, she didn’t look back.
Then, he saw her happily greet the little friends next to her.
Lin Miao quickly turned her head back to look at them, waving her hand at him.
On the way back, Lin Miao was still able to fall asleep in the car, having shared her joy of winning the championship the previous day.
When Mother Yu heard that Lin Miao had won first place, she was extremely happy and hung the medal on the wall. She also cooked a nice meal.
So, Lin Miao got to enjoy the joy of winning all over again.
Of course, she still had to go back to school. Lin Miao really liked school. After returning to school, she was praised once again. Lin Miao felt a bit embarrassed from all the praise and didn’t say that she actually lost every day.
It was fine; it was rare to win, so she enjoyed the praise. She figured she was just lucky to win this time.
After all, she was used to losing.
However, a couple of days later, someone came looking for her.
The Chinese teacher, who often praised her, called her outside and said someone was looking for her.
Then, she saw a kind-looking uncle standing next to Teacher Feng.
“Lin Miao, come over. This is Coach Li from the Shanzha Badminton Sports School.”
Lin Miao obediently greeted him, “Hello, Coach Li.”
She knew that a coach was like a teacher, and Lin Miao had great respect for teachers.
“How long have you been learning badminton?” Coach Li asked kindly.
Lin Miao wasn’t sure what he was asking for, so she answered truthfully, “I started learning during the Chinese New Year.”
Coach Li glanced at Lin Miao’s hands. They weren’t as delicate as a child's hands, her palms had calluses. He thought it was from holding a badminton racket, but it was clear these calluses didn’t come from just three months of practice. So, he thought she might be lying and asked again, “How did you get these calluses?”
“When I was little, I got them from using a sickle to cut grass,” Lin Miao replied. She didn’t understand why he asked, but she answered honestly. The calluses were indeed from when she was little.
Although, it was only a year or two ago.
Coach Li had also been through tough times, but that was thirty or forty years ago. He vaguely recalled that back then, this was something that would happen, but he hadn’t expected that today’s children would still have them.
Seeing that the little girl wasn’t embarrassed and even had a hint of pride in her eyes, he couldn’t help but ask further, “What else did you do besides cutting grass?” It seemed he was beginning to understand why this child had such strong physical strength.
“I went up the mountain to gather firewood, carried potatoes, corn...” Lin Miao added, “But Coach, now my mom wants me to focus on studying. I can’t work anymore, I have to wait until I grow up to work.”
She thought he was asking about work, just like last time when she stayed at Yu’s house.
Coach Li couldn’t help but laugh. No wonder during the game, he noticed that this girl was especially strong. She was the only one who played so many matches and still seemed full of energy. It turned out she had already been used to hard work.
Teacher Feng laughed too.
“It’s not work,” Coach Li patiently explained. “I wanted to ask you if you would like to switch schools and come to our Shanzha Badminton Sports School, where you can focus on learning badminton. Do you like badminton?”
Lin Miao didn’t fully understand at first. After all, she was doing well at her current school, so why would she need to switch?
But she understood the last part. “I like it.”
“Then I’ll discuss it with your parents,” Coach Li said. If the child liked it, it would be easier to convince her parents.
In fact, Coach Li had been a bit hesitant because this child was already nine years old, and she was a little short.
But he realized she was truly suited for badminton. She was pure and straightforward, with no distractions. And for someone who had only practiced for three months, it was clear she had a lot of talent.
Talent, sometimes, really mattered.
When Mother Lin heard about the suggestion, she frowned. Teacher Feng had explained how many people wanted to join the sports school and how many champions had emerged from there.
Mother Lin was still hesitant. “Training for sports must be very tough, right?”
It certainly would be tough, and they couldn’t afford to move near the sports school either.
Coach Li emphasized that she would stay in the school dormitory. Mother Lin was even more concerned. She was so young!
They had finally improved their living conditions, and she felt that Lin Miao should study hard at school and eventually get into a good university.
Coach Li and Teacher Feng were left speechless.
Coach Li said, “This child has a lot of potential in badminton, and she likes it. You can think about it.”
After dinner, Lin Miao wasn’t done digesting, so she took her badminton racket and went to find some friends to play.
Mother Lin remembered that Lin Miao really loved playing badminton.
That night, when she went to bed, she discussed the matter with Lin Miao’s father.
“There’s nothing wrong with it,” Lin Miao’s father said. “Who knows, maybe she really can become a champion in the future!”
“But it’s going to be tough,” Mother Lin sighed. Things had finally improved; now that they lived near the school, she didn’t need to walk the mountain roads anymore, and after coming home, she didn’t have to work. Life had finally gotten better.
“That teacher really said our Miao Miao has talent?” Lin Miao’s father asked, sitting up.
Mother Lin nodded.
Lin Miao’s father was more farsighted. “If she really has talent, we should at least try. Otherwise, when she grows up, she might regret it.”
Although Lin Miao’s character wouldn’t blame them for making the choice, she would still feel regret. And they didn’t know whether Lin Miao thought the hardships would be worth it.
“The school is so far away; if anything happens, we won’t be able to look after her,” Mother Lin still disagreed.
“This construction project will end soon, so we can just move to the city,” Lin Miao’s father said. “Then we can live near her school. You see, we moved from the village here, so moving again is no big deal.”
Mother Lin thought for a moment. “I’ll ask her tomorrow.”
So, the next day, Lin Miao woke up to find her younger brother studying, and her mother asked her seriously, “Miao Miao, would you like to go to the sports school to learn badminton?”
Lin Miao liked badminton, so of course, she would go. But if she went to study there, she wouldn’t have to anymore, because the physical education teacher would teach her.
Mother Lin explained everything, including the teacher’s praise about her talent.
Lin Miao thought about it for a moment. “But wouldn’t going to the city school cost a lot of money?”
In the village, it was free to attend school, so naturally, a city school would be the most expensive.
Mother Lin knew from this that Lin Miao wanted to go, so she told her in advance, “It won’t cost any money, but it will be tough at the sports school.”
Lin Miao heard the words “no money” and was overjoyed. No money! No money!
Her current school was very expensive.
“Mom, I’ll go to the sports school!” Lin Miao immediately said.
How could playing badminton be tough?